


Higurashi no Koe – Yashashi-hen

by Ravus_Sapiens



Category: Higurashi no Naku Koro ni | Higurashi When They Cry, Umineko no Naku Koro ni | When the Seagulls Cry
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:33:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25992181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ravus_Sapiens/pseuds/Ravus_Sapiens
Summary: Just because the game ends and the players leave the board, doesn't mean the stories of the pieces have to end as well.This story is set after the end of Matsuribayashi-hen, and therfore contains spoilers to Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, as well as hints to the meta story in Umineko no Naku Koro ni.
Relationships: Furude Hanyuu & Furude Rika, Furude Rika/Houjou Satoko/Ryuuguu Rena, Houjou Satoshi/Sonozaki Shion, Maebara Keiichi/Houjou Satoko/Furude Rike, Maebara Keiichi/Ryuuguu Rena, Maebara Keiichi/Sonozaki Mion
Kudos: 8





	Higurashi no Koe – Yashashi-hen

**Author's Note:**

> I don't actually speak Japanese, but I tried to make the title match the official chapter names.
> 
> The title should roughly translate to "Voices of the Higurashi - Loving/Caring Chapter" (written as ひぐらしの声と - 優しい編).
> 
> I have taken care to ensure that all characters are of legal age in Japan (especially for R-rated smut in a later chapter), but since Japan's age of consent is on the lower compared to the rest of the world, things might get awkward if you are not ok with underage stuff. This is also the reason for the M-rating.

_** Hinamizawa Village, Shishibone City, Toyama Prefecture. **_

_** January 11 th, 1990 **_

The snow piled on high in Hinamizawa, as it had done for weeks. Rika let out a sigh, breaking the crisp silence of the snow. She had been up since dawn to clear away snow from the path to the Furude shrine.

Rika had awoken that morning simply _knowing_ that someone would come up the steps today, but now, hours later no one had come. “That’s not surprising,” she said, smiling to herself, “I’m not sure even the Witch of Miracles could get someone through the snow. Maybe tomorrow.”

She rarely thought about those days anymore, back when she and her friends had made a miracle happen. Now those friends had mostly scattered to the winds, Keichi had moved to Tokyo to study engineering; Mion had gone with him under some pretense of considering a career in national politics; Satoko had joined the JSDF, in a move that had surprised everyone, as soon as she turned 18; Rena and Satoshi still lived in the village: Rena was teaching at the school and Satoshi was helping Ire at the clinic; Shion too was often in the village, even though she officially lived in Okinomiya.

That just left Hanyuu, Rika hadn’t heard from Hanyuu for years. She still talked to her every day when she prayed in front of the statue of Oyashiro-sama, but she knew that she would never hear the voice of her friend again; Hanyuu had said as much the last time.

_** Night of December 8 th, 1983 **_

Satoko was at a sleepover at Rena’s place, so Rika had the house to herself.

As she would usually do when alone, she was sitting in the window with a glass of red Bernkasteler wine, and just watching the world outside, she knew she had a lot to be grateful for, she and her friends had survived the watanagashi and finally put a stop to the murders. When she sat there watching the snow fall outside, she felt every bit as old as her mind was. “It took us over 100 years, but we managed to break the cycle of that cursed watanagashi of 1983.” She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment.

When next she opened them, everything was gone, replaced by the void with all the floating world shards.

“What’s going on?! We won. We defeated Takano! What happened to that happy world?!” Rika screamed at the void.

“Don’t worry, you are just dreaming.” Said a voice behind her.

Rika turned around and saw a tall, slender woman standing there. She had long purple hair, her eyes were nearly the same color. “Who are you?” Rika asked, even though she somehow already knew the answer.

The woman gave a small smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I think you already know who I am. I am you, or rather, I was you. Nearly 200 years ago.”

“Frederica Bernkastel.” Rika muttered.

“Yes, Frederica Bernkastel; the Witch of Miracles.” Bernkastel replied, “I’m just here to thank you Rika, I think I really enjoyed this game. And to congratulate you, on finding the best world.” She paused, seeming to think for a moment, “You know, there was a future, where none of this happened, where Tanashi Miyoko never became Takano Miyo, which meant our– your parents were never killed.”

“What? How is this world better? All the suffering we endured was because of Takano!”

“No, if your parents had never died, you would not have become friends with Hōjō Satoko, therefore Hōjō Satoshi would have succumbed to Oyashio-sama’s curse much earlier. And without Takano, the Irie clinic would never have been founded so there would have been no treatment for Satoshi, he would have gone on killing people until someone stopped him. His death would have broken the last piece of Satoko’s sanity and she would eventually have killed herself. This would have stopped any seeds of the Club to grow. Then when Maebara Keiichi moved to Hinamizawa he would not find any friends. Mion would fall for him, breaking your friendship with her, but he would move away again before the watanagashi of 1983, breaking Sonosaki Mion’s heart and causing her to become like her grandmother, cold and lonely. Rena too, like Satoshi, would succumb to the curse as her father got caught in the schemes of Mamiya Rina and Hōjō Teppei. And Sonosaki Shion would be too mad with heartbreak and grief over Satoshi to help her sister lead the Sonosaki family, making Mion the last of the Sonosaki line to be born and live in Hinamizawa.”

As Bernkastel explained, Rika could see it all happening in her mind’s eye. She could imagine the web of possibilities collapsing into death, despair, madness and loneliness for all of her friends. And her eyes filled with tears, “Why did you have to tell me that?” she asked Bernkastel trying to hold back the tears.

“I’m not sure.” She replied, “I think I wanted you to understand what it is like being an endless witch, and what you saved Furude Hanyuu from. She’s not a witch, but as a god of your world, she does see the web of possibilities in her world.”

Rika wiped her eyes and asked “What will happen to Hanyuu?” But Bernkastel just shrugged.

“She will be here. Featherine and I are moving on to a new game, I’ve heard a new Witch of Miracles has appeared. Meanwhile Hanyuu will remain here, but it will probably be another thousand years before she has the power to manifest on your world again. She was only able to do so for you because Featherine decided to actively play along.”

“So I will never see Hanyuu again?”

Bernkastel sighed, “No child, I suspect not. Not while you are alive at any rate. But now this conversation is boring me, why don’t you ask her yourself?” With that, Bernkastel disappeared in a shower of purple sparks.

Rika looked around her in the void, but saw nothing except the crystalline world shards floating around her. “Hanyuu?” She asked quietly into the emptiness.

A meter in front of her Hanyuu faded into existence, “AuAu~ Rika!” she exclaimed before flinging herself around Rika’s neck, hugging her friend.

Rika tried to return the hug, but it felt like hugging smoke. Hanyuu had never been insubstantial like this, not to her. “It’s true isn’t it? This is goodbye for us?”

“I’m sorry Rika, but yes. I don’t have the power to stay material in the world anymore. I’ll still be there, like I have been there for every Furude for the past 4 millennia, but I don’t think you will be able to see me anymore. And now that Bernkastel left, I will be lonely here.”

Rika sank into her friend’s arms and cried, “It’s not fair, everyone else get to be happy, why do you have to be here all alone?”

“Shh Rika… it will be okay child.” she said stroking her friend’s hair, “This is the lot I accepted when I chose to become the victim in the first watanagashi. Unlike my daughter, I was never human, but I took upon myself all the sins of man and so I became more than I was. I became the goddess of this world. But Rika,” she said, lifting her fiend’s chin of she could look her in the eyes, “thank you for showing me how to be human, even if it was only for a few months.” With that she planted a soft kiss on Rika’s lips.

“I will never forget you!” Rika bawled.

“I know child, you might not remember all of your conversation with Bernkastel when you wake up, you will remember all of this when you wake up.”

They sat there for a while, in each other’s arms, while Rika cried for the friend, she knew she would never see again.

Then Hanyuu broke the quiet, “Come on.” she said, helping her best friend back on her feet.

Just then Rika felt a presence shift around them and disappear. “What was that?” The presence had been similar to how Bernkastel felt, but much larger. So much so that Rika hadn’t noticed it until it was gone.

“Don’t worry about it, she’s gone now. Come on, let’s sit together one last time.” She took Rika’s hand and led her towards the nearest world shard.

Rika noticed that Hanyuu was a lot more solid now, almost like she had been when they were kids playing in the fields of Hinamizawa, “but who was it?” she asked letting Hanyuu drag her after her.

Hanyuu let go of her hand and spun around, “not telling!” she said, grinning and sticking her tongue out, “A girl’s gotta have some secrets.” Then after a moment, “Let’s just say that she is to me, what Bernkastel is to you. More or less.” She said giving Rika a wink.

Deciding to try to decipher what Hanyuu was saying later, Rika walked up next to her, “is this the one?” she asked, looking at the crystalline shard floating in the void.

“Ah-ha.” she confirmed before grabbing Rika’s hand, their fingers intertwining, and touched the world shard.

“Hanyuu!” Rika opened her eyes with a gasp, dropping her wineglass to the floor where it shattered.

“Rika. Are you alright. Please don’t scare me like that.” Came a voice from the dark.

“Hanyuu, where are you?”

“I’m right here with you. I’m always here with you. Don’t worry.” The voice sounded like it came from a far-off place.

“Hanyuu…” Rika pleaded.

“shh… go back to sleep child. Sleep, and dream of happier times.”

After that, all went dark.

Rika never saw or heard from her oldest friend again. But she often thought of her and would occasionally feel a presence around herself or her friends whenever they had club meetings or just generally out and having fun.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, I cannot promise when the next chapter is going up. It took me 5 months to put this up since I use writing to deal with personal issues. I have the story, it's just not written yet.


End file.
